Nuclear and Radiochemistry

India

Preface

This book is the second edition of Nuclear and Radiochemistry first published in 2012, and aims to provide the reader with a detailed description of the basic principles and applications of nuclear and radiochemistry. Its content is based on the authors’ more than 55 and 30 years of experience, respectively, as professors of nuclear and radiochemistry at both the B.Sc. and M.Sc. levels in the Imre Lajos Isotope Laboratory of the Department of Physical Chemistry at the University of Debrecen, Hungary. The second edition is improved and complemented, especially by some novel aspects of nuclear chemistry applications, mainly in industry and nuclear medicine.

Although the book contains all modern aspects of nuclear and radiochemistry, it still has a characteristic local flavor. Special attention is paid to the thermodynamics of radioisotope tracer methods and to the very diluted systems (carrier-free radioactive isotopes), to the principles of chemical processes with unsealed radioactive sources, and to the physical and mathematical aspects of radiochemistry. This approach originates from the first professor of the Isotope Laboratory, Lajos Imre, who himself was Otto Hahn’s disciple and coworker.

The material is divided into 14 chapters. Chapters 1–6 discuss the basic concepts of nuclear and radiochemistry, and Chapters 7–14 deal with the applications of radioactivity and nuclear processes. There are separate chapters dedicated to the main branches of modern radiochemistry: nuclear medicine and nuclear power plants, including the problems of the disposal of nuclear wastes. One chapter (Chapter 10: Radio- and Nuclear Analysis) deals with nuclear analysis (both bulk and surface analyses), including the analytical methods based on the interactions of radiation with matter.

As mentioned previously, the authors have extensive experience in teaching nuclear and radiochemistry. Therefore, we have had the chance to work with many exceptional students and excellent colleagues. Many thanks for their contributions. We are grateful for their assistance in the improvement of our educational work and the useful discussions that helped to advance our understanding in this field.

We thank our colleagues who have contributed to this book, namely, Dr. Lajos Baranyai (Chapter 11: Industrial Application of Radioisotopes and Section 8.7) and Dr. József Varga (Chapter 12: An Introduction to Nuclear Medicine). Many thanks to Prof. Zoltán Trócsányi, Dr. Szabolcs Vass, and Prof. József Kónya (a physician) for their assistance in the fields of elementary and composite particles, neutron diffraction, and the biological effects of radiation, respectively. Thanks also to those colleagues, namely, Prof. László Bartha, Prof. Dezső Beke, Dr. István Csige, Prof. Julius Csikai, Prof. Béla Kanyár, Dr. Anikó Kerkápoly, Dr. Zsófia Kertész, Dr. Péter Kovács-Pálffy, Dr. László Kövér, Prof. Ernő Kuzmann, Boglárka Makai, Katalin Nagy, Zoltán Nemes, Dr. Katalin Papp, Dr. Péter Raics, Dr. Zsolt Révay, Dr. László Szentmiklósi, Dr. Edit Szilágyi, Dr. Nóra Vajda, who have provided excellent representative photographs, figures, data, and so on. Prof. Julius Csikai provided the beautiful photograph on the book cover. Thanks to Zoltán Major for improving the quality of the photograph.

We also thank Dr. Klára Kónya for the critical reading of the manuscript and for her remarks and corrections.

The work was supported by the TÁMOP 4.2.1./B-09/1/KONV-2010-0007 project (first edition); the project was co-financed by the European Union and the European Social Fund. The second edition was supported by the EU and co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund under the project GINOP-2.3.2-15-2016-00008 and by the Hungarian National Research, Development and Innovation office (NKFIH project K120265).

We recommend this book to students in chemistry, chemical engineering, environmental sciences, and specialists working with radiochemistry in industry, agriculture, geology, medicine, physics, analytics, and to those in other fields.

József Kónya and Noémi M. Nagy

Debrecen, Hungary, May 2017

Chapter 1

Introduction

Abstract

This chapter sketches the state of the natural sciences at the end of the 19th century, the discoveries signed by Lavoisier, Dalton, and Avogadro, and also shows how the model of the matter was challenged when the radioactivity was discovered. The chapters contain a table summarizing the main steps of the development of nuclear and radiochemistry from Bequerel’s discovery until now, including the Nobel Prizes obtained in this field. This table informs the reader in which sessions these steps are mentioned or discussed in this book.

The scientific and practical importance of the nuclear and radiochemistry are shortly illustrated such as the basis of the modern atomic theory, the nucleogenesis, the practical applications of radioactivity, the tracer methods, activation analysis, nuclear medicine, radiation therapy.

It is emphasized that radioactivity is a natural process. The most important natural radioactive isotopes are listed.

Keywords

Dalton’s atomic theory; discovery of radiation; history of nuclear science; spontaneous decay; types of radiation; radioactive elements; natural radioactive isotopes

From the dawn of natural sciences, scientists and philosophers have reflected on the nature of matter. At the end of the 19th century, the discoveries signed by Lavoisier, Dalton, and Avogadro (namely, the law of conservation of mass, the atomic theory, and the definition of a mole as a unit of the chemical quantity) led to a plausible model. This model was built on the principles of Dalton’s atomic theory, which state that:

• all matter is composed of small particles called atoms,

• each element is composed of only one chemically distinct type of atom,

• all atoms of an element are identical, with the same mass, size, and chemical behavior, and

• atoms are tiny, indivisible, and indestructible particles.

In the same period, the basic laws of thermodynamics have been postulated. The first law of thermodynamics is an expression of the principle of conservation of energy.

This model of the matter has been challenged when it was discovered that the same element can have radioactive and stable forms (i.e., an element can have atoms of different mass). The discovery of the radioactivity is linked to Henri Becquerel’s name and to the outcome of his experiments which were presented in 1896 at the conference of the French Academy and published in Comptes Rendus e l’Académie des Sciences.

Following his family tradition (his father and grandfather also studied fluorescence, and his father, Edmund Becquerel, studied the fluorescence of uranium salts), Becquerel examined the fluorescent properties of potassium uranyl sulfate [K2UO2(SO4)2·2H2O]. Since Wilhelm Röntgen’s previous studies, it has been known that X-rays can be followed by phosphorescent light emitted by the wall of the X-ray tube, and Becquerel wanted to see if this process could be reversed, i.e., if phosphorescent light could produce X-rays. After exposing potassium uranyl sulfate to sunlight, he wrapped it in black paper, placed it on a photographic plate, and observed the X-ray. He repeated the experiments with and without exposure to sunlight and obtained the same result: the blackening of the photographic plate. He has concluded that the blackening of the photographic plate was not caused by fluorescence induced by sunlight, but rather by an intrinsic property of the uranium salt. This property was first called Becquerel rays, and later it was termed radioactive radiation. (In 1867, Niepce de Saint-Victor showed that uranium salts emit radiations in the dark, but Becquerel rejected this saying that Niepce could not have observed the radiation from uranium because the author used plates that were not sensitive enough.). Becquerel also has observed that electroscope loses its charge under the effect of this radiation because the radiation induces charges in the air.

The same radiation was observed by Pierre Curie and Marie Curie, as well as G. Schmidt in Germany using thorium salts. They have found that the ores of uranium and thorium have more intense radiation than the pure salts: e.g., pitchblende from Johanngeorgenstadt and Joachimstal has about five and four times more intense radiation, respectively, than black uranium oxide (U3O8). This more intense radiation originates from elements that were not present in the pure salts, which later were identified as the new radioactive elements polonium and radium, and which were separated from uranium ore in Joachimstal. The Curies presented the results at the French Academy in 1898 and published in Comptes Rendus e l’Académie des Sciences. As proposed by Marie Curie, the first new radioactive element, polonium, was named after her homeland of Poland. In the Curies’ laboratory, radioactivity was detected by the ionization current produced by the radiation. In 1902, the Curies produced 100 mg of radium and determined the atomic mass, which they later corrected (226.5 g/mol). Marie Curie produced metallic radium by electrolysis of molten salts in 1910.

Rutherford has differentiated three types of radiation (alpha, beta, and gamma) by using absorption experiments in 1889. He also determined that the radiations had very high energy. In 1903, Rutherford and Soddy concluded that the radioactive elements are undergoing spontaneous transformation from one chemical atom into another and that the radioactive radiation was an accompaniment of these transitions. Radioactive elements were called radioelements. Since they were not known earlier, and therefore did not have names, some of them were named by adding letters to the name of the original (i.e., parent) element (e.g., UX, ThX). Others were given new names (such as radium, polonium, radium emanation-today radon).

The discovery of radium and polonium filled two empty places on the periodic table. Later studies, however, showed that some radioactive elements had the same chemical properties as known stable elements—they differed only in the amount of radioactivity. Therefore, they should be put in places in the periodic table that are already filled, which is impossible according to Dalton’s atomic theory. For example, different types of thorium (thorium, UX1, iononium (Io), radioactinium, today Th-232, Th-234, Th-230, and Th-227, respectively) and radium (radium, mesothorium1, ThX, AcX, today Ra-226, Ra-228, Ra-224, or Ra-223, respectively) atoms have been recognized.

These experimental results presented serious contractions to the Daltonian model of matter and the principle of the conservation of mass and energy. Einstein has solved part of these contradictions using the law of the equivalence of energy and mass:

(1.1)

where E is the energy of the system, m is the mass, and c means the velocity of light in a vacuum.

As the interpretation of the other part of the contradictions, Soddy defined the term isotopes, neglecting the postulate in Dalton’s theory on the identity of the atoms of an element. Accordingly, isotopes are atoms of the same element having different masses.

What kind of scientific and practical importance did these discoveries have? At first, they formed the basis of the modern atomic theory, resulting in the development of new fields and explaining some phenomena. For example, nucleogenesis, the formation of the elements in the universe, now can be explained based on the principles of natural sciences, attempting to give a philosophical significance of the creation.

From the beginning, the practical importance has been underestimated. In 1898, however, radium found its role in cancer therapy. In 1933 during the Royal Society meeting, Rutherford said that any talk of atomic energy was moonshine. Rutherford’s statement inspired Leo Szilárd to devise the principle of the nuclear chain reaction, which was experimentally discovered by Otto Hahn in 1938. The chain reaction of uranium fission led to the production of nuclear power plants, and, unfortunately, nuclear weapons as well. However, in the future, the production of cheap, safe atomic energy can play a significant role in supplying energy.

Tracer methods, activation analysis, nuclear medicine, and radiation therapy can be mentioned as the practical applications of radioactivity. As mentioned previously, radioactivity has been discovered to be a natural process. Therefore, it is not an artificial product as believed by many. The environmental radioactive isotopes can be classified into three groups:

1. The members of three natural decay series starting with ²³⁸U, ²³⁵U, and ²³²Th isotopes. From an environmental point of view, the members with relatively long half-lives are important, e.g., ²²⁶Ra and its daughter elements, ²²²Rn, ²¹⁰Pb, ²¹⁰Bi, ²¹⁰Po from the decay series of ²³⁸U and ²²⁰Rn from the thorium series.

2. Long-life nuclei produced during nucleogenesis, e.g., ⁴⁰K, ⁵⁰V, ⁸⁷Rb, ¹¹³Cd, ¹¹⁵In, ¹²³Te, ¹³⁸La, ¹⁴⁴Nd, ¹⁴⁷,¹⁴⁸Sm, ¹⁵²Gd, ¹⁵⁶Dy, ¹⁷⁴Hf, ¹⁷⁶Lu, ¹⁸⁶Os, ¹⁸⁷Re, ¹⁹⁰Pt.

3. Natural radioactive isotopes continuously producing in the nuclear reactions of the atoms of air (nitrogen, oxygen, argon) with cosmic radiation, e.g., ³H, ⁷,¹⁰Be, ¹⁴C, ²²Na, ²⁶Al, ³²,³³P, ³⁵S, ³⁶Cl, ³⁹Ar.

As previously discussed, many of these elements have naturally occurring radioactive isotopes.

The main stages of the history of nuclear science are summarized in Table 1.1, including the Nobel Prizes gained by the scientists working in this field. In addition, the chapters of this book related to the given stages are also listed.

Table 1.1

In Table 1.1, the time of the experimental nuclear explosions by different countries is also mentioned. The useful applications of nuclear energy can be indicated by the increase in the capacity and number of nuclear power plants, as shown in Fig. 1.1.

Figure 1.1 History of the use of nuclear power (top) and the number of active nuclear power plants (bottom). Free documentation from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_power (accessed 23.11.16.).

Further Reading

1. Becquerel H. Sur les Radiations Invisibles Emises par les Corps Phosphorescents. Comptes Rendus Acad Sci Paris. 1896;122:501–503.

2. Curie M. Rayons E ´ mis par les Composes de l’Uranium et du Thorium. Comptes Rendus Acad Sci Paris. 1898;126:1101–1103.

3. Curie P, Sklodowska-Curie M. Sur une Nouvelle Substance Radioactive Contenu dans la Pechblende. Comptes Rendus Acad Sci Paris. 1898;127:175–178.

4. Haissinsky M. Nuclear Chemistry and Its Applications Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley; 1964.

5. Hanh O. Vom Radiothor zur Uranspalzung Braunschweig: Friedrich Vieweg & Sohn; 1962.

6. Le Bon G. L’e´volution de la matie`re Paris: Flammarion; 1912.

7. Stein W. Kulturfahrpl.an Berlin: F.A. Herbig Verlangbuchhandlung; 1958.

8. Trelvis, 2002. Nuclear power. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_power> (accessed 23.11.16.). Atomarchive.com, 1998_2011. (accessed 23.11.16.).

9. Vroman, R., 2003. List of states with nuclear weapons. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_states_with_nuclear_weapons> (accessed 23.11.16.).

Chapter 2

Basic Concepts

Abstract

This chapter will discuss the basic properties of nuclei, including the composition, nuclear forces, and other properties (rest mass, electric charge, spin, parity, statistics, magnetic momentum, and electric quadruple momentum). The elementary particles in the nuclei will be quantitatively characterized. It will be shown that electrons cannot be present in the nucleus. The nuclear forces and their range will be discussed on the basis of the principles postulated by Yukawa and Einstein. The types of physical interactions and some elementary particles will be summarized briefly, with a concentration on the elementary particles composing the atomic nuclei and atoms and produced in the radioactive decay. In addition, the models of nuclei (liquid drop, shell, and unified and collective models) will be discussed. The liquid-drop model will be interpreted using the Weizsäcker formula. By means of the shell model, the higher stability of some nuclei (magic numbers) will be explained. The unified and collective models will represent collective effects; they will be hybrids of the liquid-drop model and the shell model.

Keywords

Atomic nucleus; proton; neutron; elementary particles; fermion; boson; nuclear forces; models of nuclei: alpha model; liquid drop model; shell model; unified and collective models

2.1 Atomic Nuclei

2.1.1 Components of Nuclei

The atomic nuclei were discovered by the English physicist Ernest Rutherford on the basis of Ernest Mardsen’s experiments (Fig. 2.1). In their experiments, Mardsen and Hans Geiger studied the backscattering of alpha rays (which were known to be positively charged) from a gold plate and observed that a very small portion of these particles (the ratio of the radii is about 1 in 100,000) were scattered back at an angle of 180 degrees. Since the backscattering of the positive alpha particles is directed by electrostatic forces, this is possible only if a very high portion of the positive charge of the atom is concentrated in very little volume. This small component of the atom is the atomic nucleus. The backscattered portion of the alpha particles indicates that the radius of the nucleus is about 10⁵ times smaller than the radius of the atom.

Figure 2.1 Backscattering of alpha particles.

In addition to the positive charge, the mass of the atom is also concentrated in the nucleus. The radius of the atomic nuclei (R) can be expressed approximately by Eq. (2.1):

(2.1)

where A is the mass number and R0 is the radius of the nucleus of the hydrogen atom (R0≈1.3×10−15 m). As a consequence of Eq. (2.1), the density of any atomic nucleus is approximately the same (ρ≈2×10¹⁷ kg/m³), independent of the identity of the atoms. The mass of the nucleus is evenly distributed in the nucleus. This density then decreases quite abruptly to reach the density of the electron shell (which is very small—practically zero) at a distance of about 2.5×10−15 m from the nucleus. Similarly, the charge density surrounding the nucleus decreases over the same distance to reach the charge density of the electron shell, which is comparatively very small due to the relatively large size of the electron shell (about 10−10 m).

The alpha backscattering experiments proved that the atomic nuclei have mass, charge, and well-defined geometric size. At the time of the alpha backscattering experiments, not much was known about neutrons. It was conceptualized that in order to neutralize the positive charge of the protons, electrons must be present in the nucleus. This model is called J.J. Thomson’s atomic model. According to this model, atomic nuclei should comprise protons and electrons. This model, however, can be disproved easily by the zero-point energy of the electron in the nucleus. Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle says that

(2.2)

where Δx and Δv are the uncertainty of the determination of the position and velocity, respectively; h is Planck’s constant; and m is the mass of the particle. The radius of the nucleus (R) can be substituted for Δx in the equation; if Δx>R, then the electron is outside the nucleus. From Eq. (2.2), Δv, and from here the energy of the electron, can be expressed as follows:

(2.3)

where ħ=h/2π.

These calculations for the nucleus show that the zero-point energy of the electron is two orders of magnitude greater than the binding energy of nucleons (7–8 MeV/nucleon). Thus, if the electrons were restricted in the nucleus, their energy would be so high that they would leave it instantly. So, it is clearly proven that electrons cannot be present in the nucleus. Subsequently, in 1920, Rutherford conceptualized that the nucleus contains neutral particles that explain the difference between the charge and the mass of the nucleus. These particles were called neutrons, and they were experimentally demonstrated by James Chadwick in 1932 (Section 5.5.1).

Atomic nuclei consist of protons and neutrons. The number of protons is the atomic number (Z), and the sum of the number of protons (Z) and neutrons (N) is the mass number (A). The particles composing the nuclei are called nucleons.

2.2 Forces in the Nucleus

The mass of the charged particles (protons, nuclei, and electrons) can be determined by injecting them at high speed into a magnetic field, where depending on their charge and mass, the path of particles deviates from a straight line. Neutrons, however, have no charges, so the mass of a neutron cannot be measured this way; rather, its mass must be deduced. This can be achieved by the dissociation of the deuterium nucleus (one proton and one neutron) to a proton and neutron under the effect of gamma radiation.

The masses of free protons, neutrons, and electrons are listed in Table 2.1. When comparing the mass of the nucleus of an atom to the total mass of the free protons and neutrons, we can see that the sum of the mass of the free nucleons is always greater than the mass of the corresponding nucleus in the atom.

Table 2.1

aAMU, atomic mass unit.

b1 AMU.=931 MeV/c² (million electron volts, Section 2.2).

This difference will be equal to the binding energy of the nucleus (ΔE). (Note that Einstein’s formula for the equivalence of mass and energy (shown in Eq. (1.1)) can be used to calculate the binding energy.) When the binding energy of the nucleus is divided by the mass number, the binding energy per nucleon is obtained (ΔE/A):

(2.4)

where M is the mass of the atom (not the nucleus).

The stability of a given nucleus can be characterized by the value of the binding energy per nucleon. The binding energy per nucleon as a function of atomic mass is shown in Fig. 2.2.

Figure 2.2 The binding energy per nucleon as a function of mass number.

The characteristic binding energy per nucleon for the most stable nuclei is in the range of 7–9 MeV. The absolute value of the binding energy per nucleon—the mass number function shows a maximum of about mass numbers 50–60. This mass represents the elements of the iron group; thus, these elements are the most stable ones in the periodic table. The smallest nucleus, where the term of the binding energy per nucleon can be defined, is the deuterium, which has the smallest binding energy per nucleon (around 2.2 MeV).

The binding energy is usually expressed in millions of electron volts. One electronvolt is the amount of energy gained by an electron of charge –e (e is the elementary charge, e=1.6×10−19 C) when it is accelerated through an electric potential of 1 V. Transferring the electron volt to the SI unit of energy (joule), 1 eV=1.6×10−19 C×1 V=1.6×10−19 J. For every 1 mol of electrons (found by multiplying by the Avogadro’s constant (6×10²³ particles/mol)), about 10⁵ J is obtained. The energy of an atomic mass unit (931 MeV/c²), mentioned in Table 2.1, is ~10¹⁴ J for 1 mol. The binding energy per nucleon (7–9 MeV) is about 10¹¹ J that is 10⁸ kJ. Therefore, the binding energy of the nuclei is about 10⁸ kJ/mol.

Now let’s compare the binding energy of the nuclei to the energy of chemical bonds. The energy of primary (ionic, covalent) chemical bonds is a few hundred kJ/mol (an amount of electron volt per mole). Thus, the difference is about six orders of magnitude: the binding energy of the nuclei is about a million times higher than the energy of the chemical reactions.

In 1935, Yukawa provided an interpretation of the nature of the forces in the atomic nuclei using quantum mechanics. He constructed a model similar to the one for electrostatic forces, where two charged particles interact through the electromagnetic field. In Yukawa’s model, the so-called meson field should be substituted for the electromagnetic field. In the case of the meson field, the range of the interaction is very short (about 10−15 m), while the electromagnetic field has a much bigger range. The potential energy between two particles in the nuclei, known as the Yukawa potential energy (U), can be expressed as a function of the distance of the two particles (r):

(2.5)

In Eq. (2.5), the potential energy is negative, indicating that the force is attractive. The constant g is a real number; it is equal to the coupling constant between the meson field and the field of the protons and neutrons. R is the range of the nuclear forces, expressed as follows:

(2.6)

where h is Planck’s constant, c is the velocity of light in vacuum, and mπ is the rest mass of the meson. Assuming that the meson field range is about 10−15 m, Yukawa suggested that there must be a particle with a rest mass of about 200 times that of an electron. In fact, this particle was observed in the cosmic ray in 1948. It is called π-meson, and its rest mass is 273 times larger than the rest mass of the electron. The meson is a composite particle (as discussed in Section 2.4).

The total nuclear binding energy (ΔE) can be given approximately on the basis of nuclear forces, by the summation of the interaction energies of the nucleon pairs (Ur,kl) at the distance r:

(2.7)

where ΔE is the total nuclear binding energy, and k and l are the number of protons and neutrons, respectively. The protons and neutrons are considered to be identical. The factor 1/2 is in Eq. (2.7) because of the two summations for protons and neutrons, so each nucleon appears twice. In the Yukawa model, the total binding energy of the nucleus is proportional to the product of the number of protons and neutrons:

(2.8)

The function of the total binding energy has a maximum of the atomic number expressed as follows:

(2.9)

From here

(2.10)

In conclusion, those nuclei should be stable, such that the number of protons and neutrons are equal. This is indeed the case for light nuclei (e.g., ⁴He, ¹²C, ¹⁴N, ¹⁶O, ²⁴Mg). However, for heavier nuclei, the number of protons increases, so the electrostatic repulsion of the positively charged protons increases and becomes significant beside the Yukawa potential energy. For this reason, extra neutrons are needed for stability. So Eq. (2.10) is modified as:

(2.10a)

which means that the nuclei with high atomic numbers are stable at the ratio of neutron/proton=1.4:1. The nuclei with medium atomic numbers have a ratio of neutron/proton between two values (1–1.4), i.e., the ideal neutron/proton ratio of the stable nuclei continuously changes in the periodic table (Fig. 2.3).

Figure 2.3 The stability of nuclei: atomic number as a function of the number of the neutrons. Conventional nuclear chart taken from Bès, D.R., 1965. Nuclear structure away from the region of β-stability. Nucl. Instrum. Methods. 38, 277–281 (Bes, 1965) with permission from Elsevier.

The energy of the electrostatic repulsion can be calculated as follows:

(2.11)

where e is the elementary charge and Ra is the radius of the nucleus.

The nuclei are classified as isotope, isobar, isoton, or isodiaphere based on the number of nucleons (Table 2.2).

Table 2.2

2.3 Other Properties of Nuclei

where I is the quantum number of the nuclear spin, simply called nuclear spin. Nuclei with even mass numbers have I. The nuclear spin is the vector sum of the spins of all protons and neutrons. In nuclear reactions, the conservation of spins also must occur.

Parity is related to the symmetry properties of nuclei. It expresses whether the wave function of a particle is even or odd (symmetrical or antisymmetrical), depending on whether the wave function for the system changes sign when the spatial coordinates change their signs.

(2.12)

(2.13)

Parity is also conserved by nuclear reactions.

The spin and the parity can be signed together: for nuclei with even parity, a+ is written after the value of the spin, while for nuclei with odd parity, a− is written (e.g., 0+ or 7/2−).

The particles can be characterized by statistics describing the energies of single particles in a system comprising many identical particles, which has a close connection to the spin and parity of the particles. The particles with half-integral nuclear spin can be described using the Fermi–Dirac statistics. These particles obey the Pauli exclusion principle and have odd parity. These particles are called fermions. The particles with zero or integral spin and even parity can be described using the Bose–Einstein statistics. These particles are called bosons.

The movement of a charged particle causes magnetic momentum. The unit of measure for magnetic momentum is the Bohr magneton, which describes the magnetic momentum of an electron:

(2.14)

For the nucleus, the mass of the proton can be substituted into Eq. (2.14) as follows:

(2.15)

where T is tesla. The quantity μN expresses the unit of nuclear magnetic momentum. The magnetic momentum of the different nuclei is in the range of 0–5μN. Surprisingly, the magnetic momentum of the proton is about 2.79 times bigger than the value calculated from Eq. (2.15). Perhaps more surprisingly, the neutrons also have magnetic momentum, which is −1.9135μN. This implies that the neutral neutron consists of smaller charged particles known as quarks, as discussed in Section 2.4. The negative sign of the magnetic momentum of the neutron indicates that the spin and magnetic momenta point to opposite directions.

Besides magnetic momentum, nuclei can have electric quadruple momentum, too. The formation of quadruple momentum can be caused by the deviation of charge distribution from the spherical symmetry. Quadruple momenta have been determined for many nuclei with I>1/2. Nuclei with I=0 or 1/2 cannot have quadruple